


Part of the Pack

by theriveroflight



Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Aromantic Asexual Ruby Rose (RWBY), Families of Choice, Gen, Ladybug Week 2020 (RWBY), Pack Family, Vampires, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:47:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27577400
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theriveroflight/pseuds/theriveroflight
Summary: Ladybug Week day 3: Vampire/Werewolf AUBlake is the ruler of Menagerie. Ruby leads a Pack. It's similar to canon, except where it isn't.
Relationships: Blake Belladonna & Ruby Rose, Blake Belladonna & Sun Wukong, Ilia Amitola & Blake Belladonna, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Qrow Branwen & Ruby Rose
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10





	Part of the Pack

**Author's Note:**

> I was picturing this as endgame queerplatonic Ladybug. The pack is a big QP relationship for Ruby.
> 
> Minor Freezerburn and Renora.
> 
> Blake and Ruby have an underappreciated dynamic.
> 
> Also apparently this is my 75th work on AO3, so woohoo!

Blake Belladonna has been on Remnant for a very long time. She’s the ruler of Menagerie — the last haven for the Mythics society chooses to reject — whether it is due to the supposed danger posed by any of them, or a few outliers dooming the entire species.

Blake is two — a Wildebryde, not quite rejected but not quite accepted — and a vampire. She wasn’t born the latter, but was turned later on. The Wildebryde end of the Belladonna line allows the regular humans to agree to consort with her, and being turned has actually increased her approval among the population of Menagerie. It’s important, because there are elections.

Not that she’s ever  _ lost.  _ It was her father before it was her, and though he did not possess her immortality, he still won quite a bit.

At any rate, she’s sitting at her office. There’s nothing at the moment for her to do — the island is fairly self-sufficient, but without her they would descend into chaos. 

“Chieftess Belladonna.”

“Ilia,” she answers, “you’ve known you can call me Blake.”

Ilia has been around her for a long time. Long in terms of the average Wildebryde and human lifespan, but a drop in the bucket considering immortality. Still, Ilia is from long-forgotten days of rebellion, and she keeps Ilia around as a friend, and as a reminder of what Blake once was.

“I came to inform you that the Council of Rulers is coming together again, Blake. Beacon fell, and with it the center of Vale.”

Blake is...frankly unprepared to deal with the bureaucratic nightmare that is sure to come. “Well, Ilia, I will be sure to make arrangements.”

***

Ruby is honestly just trying her best to keep her pack, her  _ family  _ together. It’s gotten larger since she first began attending Beacon University, but she’s still the youngest of them at just barely over eighteen and yet still the leader by default.

They’re some of the few that stayed, the Rose pack. Ruby refuses to leave as long as there are more lives to be saved. And who knows what the Grimm forces will do next…

But there is someone here to see her.

“Professor Goodwitch.” Ruby formally exposes her scent glands, a form of deference to a higher authority. It’s strange — she doesn’t make people defer to her, and she hasn’t had to defer to anyone else, not  _ formally  _ at least.

“I need you to represent myself and Vale at the Council of Rulers. The repair effort still needs me, but someone must go, and you’re the only pack leader I have an easy way to contact and trust.”

Ruby nods. “Is the Council meeting in Haven or Atlas?”

“Haven. The General offered to host, but after the disaster at the Fall, none of the others trust him anymore.”

“I will be there.”

“Thank you, Ruby.”

As soon as Ruby is out of her earshot, she growls. She’s never  _ wanted  _ to play politics.

But now she has to.

***

“Blake.” Oh, it’s Sun. Ever the annoyance — but the most trustworthy person she has in her corner. “I recently learned something you may want to hear. It’s about the White Fang.”

Blake sees red when he says ‘White Fang,’ throwing...something at him, whatever was in her hand. The pen clatters to the floor, having missed Sun entirely.

“I told you I never wanted to hear about them again,” she snarls, rising to grab Sun by his stupid unbuttoned shirt collar. “I should drain you now. But there is no one, unfortunately, that I can trust more at the moment.”

“You trust me?”

“Don’t make me regret trusting you.” Blake sits back down. “Because I really don’t want to.”

“You won’t. I don’t want you to suffer because of your past. But I also don’t want you to die. Ilia told me that it might not be safe to go to the meeting.”

“I’m going.” Blake unsheathes her fangs, to be a little threatening. “No matter what.”

***

The journey to Haven has a few obstacles, with remnants of Ren and Nora’s entwined past they have to get through — but they’ve always managed to pull through together, and Ruby knows that as part of her pack the others will support them.

Ruby doesn’t understand the deeper intricacies of their relationship — but she’s never understood romance. Yang is, and her parents were, and that’s enough romance for their entire family. Yang has her eyes set on Weiss, which...thank goodness. Ruby was worried that Weiss was interested in  _ her  _ when she wasn’t interested in that — she’s more than friends with her pack, but they’re her  _ family,  _ and her  _ partners. _

“Are you okay with doing this?” her uncle asks her. “I can be the one to meet with them. I was in Ozpin’s circle, and they all trust me.” It feels a little patronizing for Uncle Qrow to be doing this, but he’s always been supportive of her fighting for herself, so Ruby knows that it probably isn’t meant to be.

“I’m a wolf,” she answers. “I have teeth. There’s no need to worry about me.”

He ruffles her hair. “I know, kiddo. You’ve come so far.”

“And there’s still longer to go.”

Longer to go, indeed. They’re almost there…but there will always be more work.

***

The mainland isn’t far. It feels strange to be leaving Menagerie again. Blake hasn’t seen the mainland in a long time.

She feels simultaneously young and old. 

Her heightened senses (both from being a vampire and having two sets of ears) pick up footsteps coming behind her — Sun, she presumes, though she isn’t certain until she turns around to see him.

“I just wanted to say that I’ll be here to protect you. If something does happen.”

Blake just avoids him. She doesn’t need to be  _ protected. _

***

The meeting finally comes. Ruby and Qrow are together in the meeting, but there are two people there for every kingdom, including Menagerie.

She’s never met the reclusive ruler — not even heard of. But she’s never been closed off from participating in society, subjugated for her transformation. So perhaps it’s different.

“Who are you?” one of them asks, the ruler of Haven — President Lionheart.

“Ruby Rose, leader of the Rose pack. Glynda Goodwitch has delegated me to represent her and Vale in this meeting.” She takes out a note from her bag. “You may read the official note here. Miss Goodwitch is very busy with the rebuilding effort in Vale.”

“How is that going, Miss Rose?”

“It is difficult to rebuild when there are still Grimm swarming. We suspect that they are being attracted to a petrified Grimm Wyvern. However, it is still uncertain how to  _ destroy  _ the petrified monster at the moment. We’re doing our best to figure it out. In the meantime, my Pack is working on destroying the Grimm as they come, and Miss Goodwitch has focused her efforts on the rebuilding of the city itself, alongside several others, as we defend what has been rebuilt from being destroyed again. The priority is to reboot the CCT tower. Global communications are important especially if the perpetrators of the attack on Beacon come back.”

“What can we do to help?” She looks at the people from Menagerie — the woman had spoken. “Beacon City was one of the most Mythic-friendly cities on the mainland. I want to know what it would take to rebuild that.”

“We need  _ people.  _ A lot of people are afraid to come help due to the fact that the Grimm keep coming back, but we’re working hard to keep them away, especially from the building sites. We just need a crew or two to make the process go faster. And with more people we can maybe put our heads together and find a way to destroy that petrified dragon once and for all.”

“Do you know the cause of the petrification?” General Ironwood asks. “Atlas may be able to send supplies and technology to help with the rebuilding process.”

“Any aid is welcome,” Ruby says diplomatically before her uncle can interfere — he keeps glaring at the General, Ruby doesn’t want him to snap.

“Everyone, let’s take a break.” The Vacuan ‘ruler’ — whatever a title like that is worth in Vacuo, she doesn’t know. “We’re mostly done, but we need to make some final decisions. Fifteen minutes.”

Everyone nods, and gets up from the table. Ruby drifts towards the two representatives from Menagerie — two Wildebrydes, though she gets a vibe from the woman that she’s not  _ just  _ that.

“I’d like to offer you my thanks.”

“Your gratitude is appreciated.” The woman extends a hand. “Blake Belladonna, chieftess of Menagerie. And this is Sun, my associate.”

“Ruby Rose. But you knew that already.” Ruby shakes Blake’s hand. Blake looks around her sister’s age — but simultaneously more weathered than that.

“Well, Ruby, I would love to meet the rest of your Pack.”

“Ah, well, after this, perhaps?” Ruby says. “We don’t have time — not that it’s particularly large, we have six other people, but they’ll want to know about you two too.”

Sun whispers something to Blake. She rolls her eyes. “No, Sun, not until this is over. I know you hate formal meetings, but this is a necessity.”

“Hey, Ruby.” Uncle Qrow. “I wanted to just talk to you before we got back to it.”

“Well, I’ll see you later hopefully?” Ruby waves and goes off.

***

The two of them watch Ruby go off.

“She’s a werewolf,” Sun says.

“That was obvious from  _ leader of a Pack,”  _ Blake answers dryly. “She’s got a good head on her shoulders.”

“It’s been a while since you’ve warmed up to someone so quickly,” Sun says. “I think she could be good for you.”

“What, you want me to abandon my duties?”

“No, I just think…you would make good friends.”

She sighs. “I don’t know.”

***

Ruby is  _ exhausted.  _ She’s listening to Uncle Qrow and General Ironwood argue over resources and what exactly Vale needs, and she doesn’t know enough about what it takes to build a building — she’s always been the one on the kill squad, not the rebuilding crew.

“Your robot soldiers aren’t needed to defend the city — we all know what happened during the Fall.” Qrow scowls. “We all know what could happen again.”

And that’s when someone bursts down the door. 

“Raven?” Uncle Qrow says incredulously.

***

Blake really wishes that she had her weapon. She was itching to get into the fight — but per conditions of the meeting, no weapons allowed, concealed or otherwise.

They all stare at the intruder.

And then she watched Qrow shift to attack the intruder — he called her Raven, there was some kind of history. Raven shifted back, the two of them tussling as more came through.

Ruby gasps as one of them enters. She must recognize them from  _ somewhere.  _

“What happened to the explosions?” one of them grumbles. “Adam was—”

Blake hears the name Adam, and she has to  _ fight  _ to not flee the room. But she sees Sun grin. “We disabled the charges,” he says. “There should be police coming shortly — my colleague should have called them.”

Ilia must have broken them. Oh, so this is what Sun was trying to warn her about.

One of them takes a shot at him. Blake instinctively pushes him out of the way — she’s mostly immortal, and can heal quickly if hurt. The bullet catches her in the arm. She growls at the intruding group, baring her fangs at them.

A few more people stumble in. One of them tosses something red and black to Ruby, which she quickly whirls into a scythe.

Two of them run off.

If the White Fang was here...she needs to confront Adam.

She leaves the room while they continue to try and drive them out.

“Blake, where are you going?”

“I can’t be afraid anymore,” she answers.

And she dashes to grab her weapon, finding Adam and other members surrounded outside of the building.

“Blake,” Adam begs. “Pardon me, I can be better…”

“No.” She takes her weapon out. “I left you for a reason, Adam. And I’ll let  _ justice  _ do the work, this time.” Her other arm still hurts, but she can fight if need be.

***

It’s over faster than Ruby would expect.

Qrow and Raven stop fighting each other in wolf form eventually, exhausted from transforming outside the full moon. 

And Blake stole out of the room earlier — Ruby wonders where she went.

“I don’t think all of us should be in one room at once again. Certainly not in a way where it could be  _ advertised.”  _ General Ironwood looks at all of them. “But I do think that we have done enough for the day. And possibly for the rest of the Council, but we need to just vote on a few final decisions tomorrow and then we can stand adjourned.”

“Then we will meet again tomorrow.”

***

“Blake?” Ruby says. “I wanted you to come meet the Pack.”

“I will...come. But you still want me to meet them?”

“Of course. It doesn’t matter what you are, Blake. We’re a family, and I know it’s a little soon but I want you to be part of it.”

“I have duties in Menagerie,” Blake says. “But I think being an honorary part of your family would be...good.” Blake hasn’t been a part of something in a long time. Not since the White Fang, which claimed to be a family, but was really just  _ insidious. _

Being a part of a true family sounds like a good thing.

**Author's Note:**

> You could have also gotten werecat Blake and Ruby with a queerplatonic harem but I didn't feel like it.
> 
> Follow me elsewhere:  
> alto-tenure / main Tumblr  
> beunforgotten / writing Tumblr  
> riverofliight / Twitter (inactive)


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